ABSTRACT
Role play can be an effective pedagogical tool for promoting perspective transformation in the classroom. Making space for reflection on the full range of embodied experiences, the role play method allows students to expand their empathy as they reflect deeply on their perspectives and witness the impact that their values and actions have on others. The strategy of role play is particularly powerful when teaching pastoral care, allowing students to experience the urgency of being called on by a person in need while providing them with a contained space in which to practice. The ethical imperative not to harm another is powerfully communicated as students encounter themselves as caregivers attuned to another person’s pain and search for meaning. Through a case study on abortion, this chapter presents a classroom environment that focuses on respecting the individual’s core values and religious traditions (in this case, Jewish halakhic/legal commitments), equipping students to become effective, reflective practitioners of pastoral care. The classroom instructor is also encouraged to model ongoing formation as an embodied human being, inviting students into sacred struggle with issues of sexuality and gender.
